Conservation of Collections in Affected Areas
The recent fires have caused extensive damage in several areas and precious items of cultural importance may have been damaged or lost.
Conservation of Museum, Gallery and Historical Society Collections
Arts Victoria has an established protocol for immediate responses to disasters impacting collections of cultural heritage. Three peak bodies are signatories to this protocol:
Under the terms of this protocol, these bodies can spend up to $5,000 per affected organisation, on emergency conservation work to conserve damaged historical/cultural collections.
Museums, Galleries and Historical Societies wanting to access this funding are asked to contact their relevant peak body.
Conservation of Personal Collections
Items don't have to be kept in a museum to be considered precious. You may have medals, jewellery, furniture, photographs or documents at home that are culturally or historically important.
The Australian Institute for the Conservation of Cultural Materials advises that many items recovered from the fires may be completely or partially savagable. To find out how to assess and salvage your precious items, visit the AICCM website or download the AICCM Fact Sheet (PDF, 256KB) (PDF 256KB)